The Twelve Gifts Of Christmas
by The Bloody Red Queen Of Angst
Summary: "Christmas isn't everyone's cup of tea. But...everyone needs friends. Everyone needs family. And no one should be alone." A continuation and connection to "Home For The Holidays." *Oneshot/Complete*


**A/N: So...this is three days late to the party. And, if I'm honest, this probably isn't my best one shot either. But gosh, darnit. Christmas is just the absolute best time of year. Simply magical, filled with blessings. So, with some love and laughter, here is wishing you all the very best for the new year!**

* * *

 _Strange, isn't it? Each man's life touches so many other lives. When he isn't around he leaves an awful hole, doesn't he?_

-Clarence: 'It's a Wonderful Life'

He hated this time of year.

Everything about it.

The cold.

The snow.

The days growing shorter.

The nights...longer.

...actually..?

He didn't mind that so much.

But then there was Thanksgiving.

Christmas.

And right-smack-dab-in-the-middle?

...his birthday...

So really...what _wasn't_ there to hate?

Another year, and he was still living the same shit life. Surrounded by the same shit people. With the same overworked shit schedule with shit hours and the same shit stress. Filled with the same noise and chaos that left him feeling so completely exhausted.

And empty.

It didn't help that this time of year held so many glaring reminders of this all encompassing absence in his life. This painful gaping void that he felt more acutely during this season. A hole never filled. One that had been created when he'd been just a child.

One word.

One thought.

One concept.

...family...

He hadn't had a family in such a long time. And...he'd never had a real home. But instead of this sense of loss and displacement subsiding and easing with time, each year he only seemed to feel it more. And, despite his roommate's vigorous and unrelenting efforts to adopt him like some charity case, this year all he really wanted was to be left alone without the endless reminders.

All he wanted this year, for his birthday and the new year, was some relief.

Some semblance of piece and quiet.

One, single solitary silent night.

And, given the season, he almost smiled at this last ironical thought.

...almost...

But not really.

Then he thought that, maybe...just maybe...if this night were quiet enough, he might just be able to fade away into its silence.

That, somehow, the quiet might just open up and embrace him.

Wordlessly shuffling through his apartment, he systematically turned down every light in his home to create an air of darkness. When he was done, he carefully made his way back into the main living area to stand at the large, beautiful sliding door to the balcony that overlooked the vast city. Staring through the glass onto the city, he stood still a moment to take in how the lights of the skyscraper buildings now filled his apartment like the Christmas lights he'd refused to put up. In protest, of course. Because...he hated absolutely everything about this time of year.

But...the city lights?

He had to admit that they were beautiful, in their own way.

Sending himself into darkness once more, he went to his disheveled room in order to retrieve one of his many, endless hoodies. Throwing it on and zipping it up, he made his way to the blackened, unkempt kitchen to warm a cup of day-old coffee. Taking a sip of the bitter brew along the way back to his living room he grimaced, but wordlessly conceded that he'd tasted worse. Armed with the cup grasped in both hands, he made his way out onto the balcony.

His favorite area of the apartment.

He gave a small, offended scowl to the cold as he glared daggers towards the snowflakes that dared to make the sensitive skin of his cheeks, nose and lashes their home. Taking another sip of the foul tasting drink to warm himself as he stared out at the city, he began his determined descent into silence and nothingness. And the cold helped, though he hated it. It aided in making him feel...

...numb...

And the numb had been a good start to this desired nonexistence until the entire illusion was obliterated with the ear-shattering sound of his cellphone's ring tone in the other room. Followed by an almost melodramatic sigh through his rebelliously pierced nose as he hung his head a moment before going back inside to retrieve the offending electronic device. Following the soft glow of his cellphone as it lit up the darkened space, he trailed through the living room back into the mess of a kitchen. Glancing at the number as he picked it up off the counter where he'd left it, an irritated scowl shaped ethereal pallid features set aglow by his phone as he glared at the number of the familiar caller. And he had half a mind to just throw his phone over the balcony to the unforgiving pavement below.

...he could afford another...

Maybe with a new number, even.

But against his better judgment, he answered instead.

His voice low and grating, strained in obvious agitation.

"What do you want?" This came a low deadpanned mumble as the voice on the other end of the line came unfazed by this show of hostility.

 _'Hi to you too, buddy!'_ This greeting came chipper and exuberant, causing the scowl to only deepen in response. _'Whatchya up to?'_ A small puffed sigh was the only response before he finally decided to answer.

"Nothing." He muttered as he slowly made his way back out to the balcony with the phone and his quickly cooling coffee. "Why?" And there was a brief pause before the disembodied voice of his roommate came through the other end of the phone.

 _'Cause I need you to do somethin' for me.'_ And he suddenly felt a small twinge of alarm.

Because...whatever his roommate wanted him to do...it couldn't be good.

 _'Com' on, Aden.'_ The voice of his roommate coaxed through dwindling patience to his apprehension. _'Lend a man a hand, dude.'_ And Aden's breath manifested into a steamed sigh before he took another generous swallow of his now cold coffee to bide his time in giving reply.

"Fine." Aden muttered begrudgingly through a flat deadpan. "What do you need."

 _'I need you to go into my room and look for something.'_

And with this request, Aden set out towards his roommates bedroom.

"What am I looking for?" He asked as he finally entered the man's personal space.

 _'A box on my dresser.'_

"Tell me again why I'm doing this for you?" Aden muttered as he made his way towards the man's bureau.

 _'Cause you love me.'_ This came a pithy, comical response filled with confidence that caused Aden's brows to knit together in irritation.

"No." He muttered this one-word rebuke into the phone as he continued to search the man's room for the box. "Guess again."

 _'Uh...cause you're a really, really nice person?'_

And _this_ response from his friend actually made Aden give the small sardonic snort of a stifled laugh before quickly reigning himself in and correcting himself.

...he didn't need the man thinking that he thought this was funny... It would only encourage his insufferable behavior.

"Not really." He grumbled to his roommate as he heard the man chuckle over the other end of the line.

 _'So, have you found the box yet?'_

"Still looking." Aden muttered.

 _'What's taking so long?'_ His friend quipped impaciently, earning a scowl from the sullen performer.

"It's _dark_ , Gabe." Aden snapped.

 _'Why?'_ The man asked in a curious tone.

"Because I turned off all the lights." He retorted matter-of-factly in a flat deadpan.

 _'Then turn on a light, dude.'_ Gabe countered over the other end of the line.

"No." This came a childishly petulant one-word response, ending the brewing argument between them as Aden continued his search before finding the box on his roommate's dresser.

Grasping the box, Aden shuffled back out of the room into the main living area where the city lights continued to fill the room with a soft, unobtrusive glow.

 _'You got the package, yet?'_ He heard this question laced in mild, childlike impatience.

"Yeah..." Aden mumbled lowly into the phone. "I got the package." And a subdued squeal of delight came from the other end of the line.

 _'Excellent!'_ Gabe cheered in a comical falsetto. _'Way to go finding it, man!'_ He encouraged as Aden gave another little scowl to the disembodied voice.

"Now what?" Aden asked, wandering back over to the beautiful, large sliding doors and breathtaking view of the city. "What do you want me to do with it?" He looked at the box as he listened to his friend's amused voice through the phone.

 _'Oh, you'll see.'_ Gabe answered as Aden began to read what had been conspicuously scrawled on the package in his roommate's handwriting.

"Gabe..." His voice came dangerously low and accusatory. "What is this..."

 _'I don't know, man.'_ Gabe laughed. _'What does it say?'_ And Aden's lips drew into a taut line of displeasure towards his roommate's antics as he read the message aloud.

" _'To: Aden. From: Santa. Open now.'_ "

 _'Oh... wow, dude...'_ Gabe's voice came laced in mock seriousness. _'Santa stopped by already and gave that to you?'_ He asked as Aden remained silently dumbfounded. _'You should listen to the big man and open it.'_

"...Gabe..." Aden's voice came strained in irritation. "I told you I didn't want any gifts this year."

 _'Yeah, I know.'_ This response came unfazed by Aden's hostility as his roommate artfully navigated this budding argument. _'But that was for your birthday, man.'_ He said. _'And you know I respect that, dude. Which is why I acted like your birthday never happened, just like you wanted me to.'_ This came calm and reasonable as he continued. _'This..?'_ Aden heard him almost laugh on the other end of the phone. _'This is for Christmas.'_ Gabe chuckled at having so skillfully exploited this loophole. _'Two totally different things, man.'_

"Gabe..." Aden practically moaned in a whining tone of protest.

 _'Dude...'_ Gabe scolded on the other end of the line, his voice gaining a slight edge to it as he spoke. _'Stop acting like a prick and just open the box, man.'_ And Aden gave an audible grumbled growl to this order.

"Fine." He spat, deciding to humor his roommate for the time being.

...it was just easier that way...

Going to the kitchen to retrieve a large steak knife, Aden went back into the main living area where he'd left the unsolicited gift from his roommate. Pinching the phone between his ear and shoulder, Aden hunched down and went to work stabbing and slicing the box open. And...surprisingly...he found this act of savagely disemboweling the package to be strangely cathartic in relieving some of his pent up frustration towards his friend. Opening up the package, he was baffled to discover what had been placed inside.

A Santa hat?

Removing the festive headdress from the box, Aden gave a disapproving scowl to the message that had been written in black sharpy on some beige masking tape and artlessly stuck to the hat.

 _'Wear Me'_

"Gabe..." Aden groaned. "Seriously?" He held the violative hat by the white puff ball at the end, glowering at the thing as he heard his roommate's voice on the other end of the line.

 _'What?'_ Gabe asked rhetorically in a humorous tone, and Aden could just _see_ that goofy grin along his face.

"I'm _not_ wearing this, Gabe."

 _'Com' on, man.'_ Gabe coaxed encouragingly on the other end of the line.

"No." Aden retorted sourly.

 _'Just wear the freaking hat, Aden.'_ His friend's voice came more firm in this demand.

"Fine." He grumbled, donning the iconic holiday headpiece before throwing the hood of his black zip-up over the red and white hat. "There." Aden muttered angrily. "You happy now?" He asked.

 _'Did you put it on?'_ His friend quipped as Aden gave another little irritated grumbled growl.

"Yes."

 _'Awesome!'_ The man squealed through the phone. _'Now I'm gonna hang up so we can FaceTime.'_ He said. _'I wanna see what the hat looks like!'_

And just like that, Gabe hung up. Leaving Aden with only a moment of solace to himself to brood and sulk in the darkness of the apartment before his phone went off again. A notification from his device that indicated an incoming video chat request. Giving another defeatist sigh into the disturbed silence, Aden reluctantly answered the call and was met with the familiar, grinning face of his roommate.

 _'Hey, buddy!'_ Gabe chirped exuberantly as Aden scowled at his phone's screen.

"Hi." Aden retorted in a strained, tight-lipped reply.

 _'Lookin' good there, man!'_ His friend grinned with a feline-like smile that curled into his cheekbones. _'You like the hat?'_ He asked as the scowl along Aden's features only deepened in severity.

"No." Aden quipped sharply. "It's stupid."

 _'Dude...'_ Gabe scolded lightly. _'Be nice.'_

"I don't _do_ nice, _Gabe_." Aden snapped at having been reprimanded when _he_ was the one who had been so rudely inconvenienced.

 _'Don't make me get my mom involved in this, man.'_ Gabe warned as Aden pursed his lips and held his breath in protest.

"You wouldn't." Aden glowered at the screen of his phone.

 _'You've got two seconds to cheer up.'_ His friend said in a playfully serious tone that only seemed to rub Aden the wrong way.

"Gabe..." Aden warned, his expression severe under the device's glow and nothing more as the two stared each other down from miles away and this distance between them.

 _'One.'_ His roommate warned, beginning this childish countdown in response to Aden's petulant mood.

"Gabe!" Aden shouted, raising his voice in frustration.

 _'Cheer up, emo kid.'_ Gabe retorted. _'Last warning.'_

"Knock it off, Gabe."

 _'Remember...you brought this on yourself, man.'_ Gabe replied before boldly continuing. _'Two.'_

"Gabe!" Aden shouted at the device again.

 _'Sorry...'_ Gabe said with a cheeky grin. _'I gave you your chance to turn things around.'_

"No!" Aden protested in horror against his friend's next heartless move.

 _'Hey, Ma!'_ Gabe shouted to someone else off in the distance. _'You gotta come see this!'_

"Gabe, don't _do_ this to me!" Aden hissed into the device, staring his roommate down through this unwelcome video conference with an imploring look.

 _'No can do, bro.'_ This came response to the intervention of the man-child's mother, Desireé.

"Please." Aden now practically begged as Gabe grinned.

 _'Too late.'_ With this, Aden watched as the man's mother became visible on the device's screen, the warmth of the smile that spread along her lips even warmer than the glow of Aden's phone as he gave a small, defeated sigh.

Because his roommate knew. Gabe _knew_ that Aden had slowly developed a soft spot and genuine affection for the man's mother. And Gabe often heartlessly exploited his mother's ability to effortlessly disarm in order to change and alter Aden's disgruntled behavior. It was underhanded and below the belt, and Gabe knew it.

...but...it worked.

 _'Aden, baby?'_ He heard this warm greeting from the woman as her voice alone caused all fight to leave him. _'Is that you?'_

"Hi, Dezy." Aden mumbled, his voice low and completely subdued, his sharp angular features coming all the more pallid under the devices glow.

 _'Are you sitting in the dark, baby?'_ She asked, her features etched with mild maternal concern as Aden looked away from the device.

"Yeah..." He admitted honestly.

 _'Why?'_ She questioned, calling Aden's gaze back to the device in his hands and her face. _'You okay, sweetie?'_

"Yeah." Aden gave a small nod with the little white lie that followed. "I'm fine." He said. "I just turned off the lights to get a better view of the city." This came a soft mumble as he slowly shuffled towards the large sliding doors and into the city light. "See?" He gave her a small, panoramic view with the movement of his phone over the scenic night skyline.

 _'Oh wow.'_ Her voice came breathless in awed wonder. _'It's beautiful.'_ She said as Aden moved the device's view again to face himself so he could see her as she let out another little gasp. _'And look at you!'_ She continued to coo lovingly through the video message as she gave a soft chimelike giggle. _'You look so precious in that hat, baby!'_ She said approvingly as Gabe grinned knowingly to the side of her, monitoring this conversation.

"Thanks." Aden mumbled lowly again.

 _'Did Gabe do that for you?'_ She asked as the grin along Gabe's face only widened and grew.

 _'Hells to the yeah, I did.'_ Gabe practically laughed, causing his mother to chuckle and smile with pride as he gave Aden a pointed glance via this video call.

 _'Well, it's late.'_ Desireé said through a stiffed yawn that caused attractive wrinkles to appear along the corners of her eyes. _'And I need my beauty sleep.'_

 _'Awe!'_ Gabe immediately chimed in, countering his mother's words. _'Don't say that.'_ He nuzzled her, giving her a side hug as he pecked her on the cheek. _'You look gorgeous, Ma.'_ Gabe said, causing his mother to playfully roll her eyes at him as she chuckled.

 _'You're such a terrible liar.'_ She giggled, shaking her head as her son finally released her to retire for the evening.

 _'Night, Ma!'_ Gabe said.

"Night, Dezy." Aden echoed this farewell to his device as the woman on the other end of the phone smiled sweetly to him.

 _'Love you, Aden baby.'_

"Love you too, Dezy." Aden mumbled as a small, self-conscious blush began to dust pale high cheekbones.

 _'You boys be good, now.'_ She called from a small distance away off screen as Gabe openly snorted a laugh, looking towards the disembodied voice of his mother.

 _'That's practically impossible and you know it, Ma.'_ And as the woman left, the two young men fell into a moment of heavy, awkward silence.

"I hate you." Aden muttered under his breath, his scowl having reappeared when the man's mother had left.

 _'Shut your mouth.'_ Gabe chided with a childishly mischievous grin. _'You love me.'_ And Aden gave a puffed sigh, looking away from his phone.

"Yeah." He grumbled begrudgingly with the small hang of his head. "Whatever." This came dismissive as the two fell into a more comfortable, familiar silence.

 _'So...'_ This came echoed from Aden's device as Gabe finally broke the brief pause in their conversation. _'Did you see what else was in the box?'_

"There's _more_?" Aden asked dubiously with the slightest edge in his voice.

 _'Dig deep, man.'_ Gabe chortled with a growing grin to Aden's frustration. _'Dig real deep.'_

Aden glared at his device a moment, wordlessly deliberating with himself before deciding that it would probably just be best to play along for the time being. Shuffling over back to the box, he stooped to rummage through what had supposedly been missed. Taking a second look inside, he stumbled upon a small, handwritten note at the bottom that had been strategically hidden underneath the hat he now wore to humor his friend. Grasping the note between long slender, black-tipped fingers, Aden slowly read the message aloud.

" _'Aden. Welcome to your Christmas scavenger hunt...'_ " Aden scowled at the note before dark, rich brown chocolate eyes darted back to the live video message on his phone. "Gabe..." He dangerously glowered at his roommate's face on the device's screen. "What the hell is his?" And the man on the other end of the line began to laugh.

 _'Keep reading, dude.'_ Gabe coaxed through his laughter at Aden's expense, and as Aden read, he only became further infuriated.

" _'Welcome to your Christmas scavenger hunt...A.K.A, your twelve gifts of Christmas.'_ Wait...what?" Aden snapped as Gabe continued to laugh. "Twelve?" He scowled at the face on the phone, fisting what was left of the message in a crumpled paper ball. "You're giving me _twelve_ of these stupid things?!"

 _'Yup!'_ Gabe chirped proudly, completely pleased with himself. _'The hat was just the first one!'_ He said with the feline-like curl of his lips in amusement. _'And now you have to find the rest.'_

"You've _got_ to kidding me." Aden groaned in open protest to this. "I swear... If you were here right now, I'd punch you in the face." He hissed under his breath.

 _'Dude. Why do you think I set all this up and then left?'_ Gabe laughed.

"I don't _want_ to go around looking for your dumbass gifts, Gabe." Aden continued to make an almost infantile fuss over this game.

 _'None of them are hidden outside our place.'_ Gabe promised this in a gentle, coaxing tone. _'You won't have to leave the apartment, dude.'_ He said with a kind smile.

"You promise..?" Aden grumbled with the dubious raise of the brow.

 _'Promise.'_

Aden considered this a moment. Sensing the honesty of his friend's words before he hesitantly relented and acquiesced.

"Fine." He reluctantly conceded as he watched the smile along Gabe's lips twist into something quite mischievous.

 _'Excellent!'_ Gabe fisted his mouth, biting down on his knuckles as he let out an excited squeal.

"Gabe..." Aden groaned towards his friend's obnoxious exuberance over his inevitable acceptance.

 _'Alright, alright.'_ Gabe calmed himself through stifled laughter.

"...so..." Dark rich chocolate eyes narrowed along the device's screen and his friend's familiar face. "...what now?" He asked.

...and Gabe just grinned...

 _'Now...'_ Gabe's voice dropped in mock seriousness to the acceptance of this challenge. _'You start in the kitchen. Look in the cupboard with the coffee cups.'_

And thus, began Aden's Christmas adventure. One he'd never intended on having. One...he had wanted to avoid. But it happened all the same as he wandered with his phone and Gabe in toe to the kitchen, to the cupboard Gabe had specified.

There, Aden found a strategically and well hidden gift that had then been conspicuously wrapped in the relieving shape of a new mug. He unceremoniously stripped away the cover to find that it was exactly as he had suspected. A new cup. Basic. White. With black script that read _'I like my coffee black like my nail polish.'_ An online purchase Gabe had gotten personalized. _He_ had thought it was funny. Aden...not so much. And, neatly folded and placed in the mug was another handwritten note with directions to the next gift.

Eggnog that Gabe had concealed in the vegetable crisper that Aden never used. And on this carton of eggnog Gabe had stuck another strip of beige masking tape on which he'd scribbled _'pour me.'_ Aden hated eggnog. Gabe knew this. But he encouraged him to pour the nauseatingly thick, distasteful holiday beverage into his newly acquired glass anyway, claiming that there would be a gift later on that would be sure to make it taste better. Then, with further coaxing, Aden reluctantly moved on towards the next prize with his phone and cup of unwanted eggnog. In a mug he hadn't asked for. Wearing a hoodie-veiled hat he felt absolutely ridiculous in.

And when he found out that the next location was the unholy sanctum of his room, Aden felt his frustration boil into full fledged rage. Gabe found himself having to talk the man down, explaining that he'd only gone in the room to hide the next three presents, and that he had gone to great lengths not to disturb anything. After some time and a way with words, Gabe seemed able to ease Aden's fears and anger over this transgression enough for the Christmas scavenger hunt to continue.

In his room, Aden was directed to a wrapped package next to his prized electric guitar, Celeste, containing stainless steel guitar picks. Each one inscribed with the date of one of their tours. And, though Aden would never have admitted it aloud, he found this gift strangely endearing. A sentiment which had been completely ruined with the next gift. A black shirt with white text that read _'Life is dumb and I want to sleep.'_ Though Aden agreed with the sentiment, he didn't entirely appreciate it as a wearable logo. Yet, the man inexplicably redeemed himself when the note accompanying the sardonic t-shirt directed him to a pair of KONVO brand wide genuine black leather men's punk rock bangle cuff bracelets. Thick, wide, with straps and rivets that Aden found to be quite pleasing to his taste in accessories. And thus with the note left in the bracelet box, and having adorned his new wristbands, Aden was led out of his bedroom and towards the seventh of his twelve gifts.

Stalking into the living room, the note directed Aden to his wicker basket and collection of tennis balls where he found another wrapped gift of...more tennis balls. Again...Gabe had found this absolutely hilarious. Aden...not so much. With some more artful coaxing to continue with the hunt, and a little prompting, Aden retrieved the next handwritten note from within the tube of new tennis balls. And a new set of directions that led him to their generous music collection, where he found himself gifted with not one, but _two_ copies of the same CD. Their band's most recent and wildly celebrated album. Aden was then under strict instructions to do no harm to the signed copy that Gabe had personally autographed for him with a message that read _'To: Aden. From: Your biggest fan. Love. Gabe'_. But, when Gabe explained that the other was for disposable purposes, Aden had taken the liberty of stalking over to the sliding door. Opening it. And throwing the extra copy careening over the balcony to the unforgiving pavement sixteen stories below.

After the cathartic rush of having obliterated his own music, Aden was directed to his next gift which had been wrapped and placed in the entertainment center amongst their DVD collection. The black and white Christmas Classic, 'It's a Wonderful Life' with an attached note that said _'Play me.'_ Gabe had needed to explain to Aden that this was...in fact...a cinematic masterpiece that no Christmas should be without. With another small bout of upheaval, Aden was prompted to make himself comfortable on the couch in front of the television with his latest gift and mug of warming cheer while made to wait for his final two gifts of this evening's charade to make their way to him.

As the introductory credits of 'It's a Wonderful Life' began to play themselves along the screen of his television, Aden heard a knock on the front door.

"Gabe..?" Aden lowly questioned darkly to his phone as Gabe began to chuckle.

 _'Dude...you better answer that.'_ Gabe laughed through the device. _'It could be important.'_

The knock at the door came again, and with a grumbled growl of protest and some colorful profanity, Aden got up from the couch and stalked to the door. Leaving the mug of eggnog, Gabe and his phone on the sofa as he opened the door to the unexpected surprise of his neighbor.

A girl by the name of Trisha Geric who was obviously sweet on _both_ young men.

As she stared up at his imposing six foot two frame looming through the threshold of his apartment Aden did his best _not_ to scowl at the woman. It wasn't her fault he'd just endured a night of hell with his absent roommate.

"...Trish..." Aden mumbled as he leaned himself against the door-frame, noticing how the woman held her hands behind her back.

"Hey." The young woman continued to smile shyly at him. "Gabe texted me saying to come over and give you these." She said before presenting him with a large bottle of vodka in one hand and a small sprig of mistletoe in the other.

Before he could formulate a response to this, Trish wordlessly gifted him with the bottle of hard liquor before raising the mistletoe above her head and lifting herself on her toes to swiftly peck him on the cheek.

"Merry Christmas, Aden." She murmured quietly with a small blush as she met his dark brooding gaze.

"Thank you." He mumbled numbly back as she quickly turned on her heels to make her way back to her apartment with the small parting wave of her hand goodnight, having left him with the final two gifts of alcohol...and a Christmas kiss.

Shuffling back into the darkened apartment, Aden made his way back to the couch...his movie...and the mug of eggnog just waiting to be spiked with Vodka. Sitting back down and pouring a generous amount of the hard liquor into the mug of eggnog, Aden sank into the couch and ruminated over how drastically his plans for this evening had changed. The faintest ghosting of a smile played along his pallid features as they came illuminated by the television.

 _'Merry Christmas, man.'_ He heard the voice of his roommate come from the phone placed next to him and this marathon video chat they'd just undergone.

"Yeah..." He mumbled to the phone on the couch as he took a large sip of spiked eggnog. "You too."

And as the two watched the iconic Christmas movie together, Aden found himself thinking that...though this night had not gone at _all_ how he had originally planned...he was strangely comforted by not being alone.

The End

* * *

 **A/N: This story contains my original characters, Aden McCaffery, Gabe La Grange, and his mother,** **Desireé** **. And the list of Aden's gifts goes as follows.**

 **1\. Santa hat**

 **2\. Coffee cup-'I like my coffee black like my nail polish'**

 **3\. Eggnog in vegetable crisper**

 **4\. Guitar picks in room next to Celeste**

 **5\. T-shirt-'Life is dumb and I want to sleep'**

 **6\. KONVO Wide Genuine Leather Men's Punk Rock Bangle Cuff Bracelets**

 **7\. A tube of tennis balls**

 **8-9. 2 CDs-one signed by Gabe 'To: Aden. From: You're biggest fan. Love Gabe.'**

 **10\. Movie: 'It's A Wonderful Life'**

 **11-12. Vodka and a kiss on the cheek**


End file.
